Welcome to Manbroidery, interviews with men who stitch. This time we meet Liam Kane, aka StitchedLime.
Name: Liam Kane
Location: Rochester, New York
Main embroidery medium: Hand Embroidery
Noteworthy projects or pieces:
I have a one or two pretty big pieces that I had to sink a couple hundred ours into. One I’m particularly proud of is a big storm closet made almost entirely out of french knots. That piece took who knows how long, a couple hundred hours probably. Over a long period of time too, I got burned out for awhile after working on it.
How did you come to be an embroiderer?
I don’t remember exactly what sparked the fascination, but I received my first basic embroidery kit for Christmas in 2019 and I’ve been stitchin’ away ever since!
What does it mean to you?
It’s a very soothing practice, like many people I deal with anxiety and stress and when I’m stitching none of that seems to matter. I consider myself pretty lucky to have found something that helps me relax so much.
Where do you like to work?
I do the majority of work in my room or living room. I used to have a studio space for a brief time, but the cost of it outweighed the amount of time I spent there.
How do people respond to you as a male embroiderer?
Honestly I’ve had nothing, but good responses from people. My gender has only come up a handful of times and it was always an older woman saying that they appreciated that I was a guy who embroidered. While I’m always happy to have my work complimented , I’d consider myself a pretty fluid human and I’m not a big fan of receiving praised based simply on the fact that I’m a guy.
Who inspires you?
Well when it comes to inspiration inside the world of embroidery, Haley Dicken on Instagram is one of my biggest inspirations, not her specific style of work, but I haven’t been able to find many artists who’s work feels so unique to them. That’s what I try to accomplish with my work and to see another person succeed there is nice.
How or where did you learn you learn how to stitch or sew?
There have been instances of me picking up a needle and thread in the past, but I just took that basic embroidery kit and ran with it! To be honest I only know a few types of stitches and I don’t even use them all regularly.
Are your current images new ones or have you used them before?
Yes generally what you’re seeing at the top of my page is newer work, I don’t generally repost older work.
How has your life shaped or influenced your work?
I guess the amount of support I’ve gotten from my family has really made it easier to spend so much time creating this work. Also this pandemic has given me plenty of time to sit and work.
Do formal concerns, such as perspective and art history, interest you?
To some degree, but not in a way that I feel affects my work. I’m really not a fan of drawing, which I’m trying to change because drawing things out more than once or in a sketch pad would no doubt only help me improve my work.
What do your choice of images mean to you?
I like people. Everyone looks so different and I love looking at peoples faces. It’s pretty incredible.
Do you look at your work with an eye toward it like what can and can’t be visually quoted? In other words what you will or won’t cut out?
I guess not? I don’t often do the same design twice so when I create one that’s what they’re going to look like.
Do you have any secrets in your work you will tell us?
I’ll be honest I don’t think I really have any secrets about my art, it’s not very conceptual. I just produce work that appeals to me visually. There’s not a particular message I’m trying to send with my body of work as a whole.
How do you hope history treats your work?
Hey at the end of the day this is just a hobby that brings me great joy, but if people remember my work exists and they’re still talking about it after I’m gone, quite frankly I’d be shocked, but appreciative.
Where can we find you and your work?
You can find my work on Instagram. In the future I’ll probably set up an Etsy or something of that nature so I can sell work in a more official manner.
